Ingestible elements

ABSTRACT

The invention relates mainly to an element suitable for being ingested, the element including at least one air-passing channel making it possible to avoid choking in the event of being swallowed the wrong way. The present invention applies to the food industry and also to the pharmaceuticals industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates mainly to elements that can be ingestedsuch as sweets, candies, dried fruit, peanuts, or medicines to be takenorally.

Medicines, such as tablets, pills, or capsules, for example, and alsocertain foodstuffs such as, for example, nuts, sweets, candies, icecubes, sugar lumps, confectionery, and chocolates are presented in theform of a relatively hard solid piece which, when swallowed the wrongway, in particular by an old person or by a child, and in particular ayoung child, runs the risk of blocking the airways, giving rise tochoking.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Consequently, an object of the present invention is to provideingestible elements that do not present a risk of choking when they areswallowed the wrong way.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such ingestiblepieces of a shape that makes them easier to swallow.

Another object of the present invention is to provide medicinespresenting active principle release properties that are optimized as afunction of the prescribed treatment.

According to the present invention, these objects are achieved by anelement of the medicine, sweet, candy, nut, dry charcuterie, or cheesetype or the like in which at least one air flow channel is formed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention will be better understood from the following descriptionand the accompanying figures given as non-limiting examples, and inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a tablet inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a tablet inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a tablet inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a capsule inaccordance with the present invention prior to being assembled;

FIG. 5 is an analogous view of the FIG. 4 capsule after it has beenassembled;

FIG. 6 is a section view of a coated tablet in accordance with thepresent invention; and

FIG. 7 is a side view of a line for making air flow channels throughingestible elements in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In FIGS. 1 to 7, the same references are used to designate the sameelements.

FIG. 1 shows a tablet 1 containing an active principle, such as aspirinfor example, having a channel 3 made through the thickness thereof tointerconnect the two main faces 5 and 7 of the tablet. The channel 3allows air to flow through. Thus, if the tablet 1 should become stuck ina position where it blocks the trachea, the channel 3 allows air to passthrough and avoids choking while waiting for the tablet to be evacuatedfrom the airways. By way of example, the channel 3 can be cylindricalwith a diameter lying in the range 0.5 mm to 6 mm, for example,preferably in the range 2 mm to 4 mm, e.g. equal to 2 mm, 3 mm, or 4 mm.Nevertheless, it should be understood that implementing channels havingsections in the form of regular or other polygons, etc., and alsochannels of varying sections would not go beyond the ambit of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 shows a tablet 1 in accordance with the present invention havinga plurality of channels 3 distributed around its periphery andadvantageously interconnected, e.g. at the center of the tablet. Thetablet of FIG. 3 is chunkier in shape making it easier to swallow and itis also provided with channels 3 regularly distributed around itsperiphery plus a channel 3 interconnecting its main faces 5 and 7. Allthe channels are interconnected in the center of the tablet 1. Thus,whatever position the tablet might occupy if stuck in the trachea, thelungs remain connected via an air flow channel to the external mediumcontaining air.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show a capsule 9 whose outer skin is constituted by afirst U-tube 11.1 having an outside diameter substantially equal to theinside diameter of a second U-tube 11.2. The tubes are suitable forbeing engaged one in the other so as to form a tube in the form of aclosed loop suitable for receiving microencapsulated particles of theactivated principles of the medicine. The space between the walls of thetube forms an air-passing channel 3. The capsule 9 can be substantiallytoroidal, or on the contrary it can be flattened. In a variant, each ofthe tubes 11.1 and 11.2 is of varying diameter so that the outsidediameter of the tapering end of a first tube corresponds to the insidediameter of the flared end of the other tube, thus enabling the tubes tobe engaged in each other.

In a variant, the outer skin of the capsule is constituted by a singletube whose ends are engaged one in the other.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a coated tablet 1 in accordance with thepresent invention comprising an active principle 13′ covered by a film15 for preventing contact with the taste buds (for a medicine ofdisagreeable taste) or for controlling release of the active principle.By way of example, the film 15 can be based on sugar. Advantageously,the film 15 covers the active principle 13′ completely, including insidethe channels 3.

Naturally, the present invention is not limited to medicines but alsoapplies to foodstuffs such as, for example, sweets, candies, biscuits,nuts, dry charcuterie, pieces of cheese, ice cubes, sugar lumps,confectionery, chocolates, and extruded products of the type comprisingcocktail nibbles and the like. The elements can be obtained bycompression or molding in molds having inserts corresponding to thechannels 3. These inserts can be implemented, for example, in the formof rods that are fixed, or moving if that should be necessary to enableunmolding.

For foodstuffs that are not shaped in this way such as hazelnuts,peanuts, cashew nuts, or the like, the channels 3 are advantageouslymade by removing material mechanically or thermally. Material isadvantageously removed by means of a punch, although drilling,mechanical machining, or laser machining would not go beyond the ambitof the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a line for making channels 3 by removing material,advantageously by means of a punch. The line comprises a conveyor 17 fedwith ingestible elements 19 by a feeder 21, e.g. a hopper. A mechanicalguide device represented by 23 serves to orient the elements 19, inparticular hazelnuts, peanuts, or advantageously, peanut halves.

The elements in which channels 3 are to be made come under a punch 25(or other removal tool) driven with motion represented by arrow 27perpendicularly to the travel direction 29 of the conveyor 17 andsynchronized therewith. In a first embodiment, the conveyor 17 movescontinuously and the punch 25 acts on moving targets. In a variant, theconveyor brings an element 19 under the punch 25 and then stops whilethe punch operates. The movement of the conveyor 17 then restarts andelements 19 with channels 3 are collected in a receptacle 31 forpackaging.

The present invention applies to the food industry and also to thepharmaceuticals industry.

What is claimed is:
 1. An ingestible element suitable for being ingestedby a person, comprising a solid piece having first and second spacedapart, generally opposed main surfaces and a peripheral surfaceadjoining and interconnecting said first and second main surfaces, andat least two intersecting bores extending through said solid piecebetween said opposed main surfaces, each bore extending from one portionof said peripheral surface to another portion of the peripheral surface,and each bore defining at least one air-passing channel making itpossible to avoid choking in the event of being swallowed the wrong way.2. An element according to claim 1, wherein the channel is cylindricalor substantially cylindrical.
 3. An element according to claim 2,wherein the channel has a diameter lying in the range 0.5 mm to 6 mm. 4.An element according to claim 1, wherein said element is a foodstuff. 5.An element according to claim 1, including an additional bore extendingthrough the solid piece from said first main surface to said second mainsurface and intersecting said at least two intersecting bores to therebyprovide a plurality of air flow channels.
 6. An element according toclaim 1, wherein said element is a tablet in the shape of a cylindricaldisc having generally circular first and second main surfaces and anannular peripheral surfaces, and wherein each bore extends diametricallythrough said disc from a first position on said peripheral surface to adiametrically opposite position on said peripheral surface.